


The Seeker and The Chaser

by kultiras



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, First Meetings, M/M, Quidditch, Teambuilding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-24
Updated: 2015-12-24
Packaged: 2018-05-07 21:23:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,649
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5471267
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kultiras/pseuds/kultiras
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Eric Bittle decided to try out for the SAMWELL Quidditch team, he never actually believed that he could make it onto the team…</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Seeker and The Chaser

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Highsmith (quimtessence)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/quimtessence/gifts).



> Highsmith, when I read your Yuletide letter, I just knew that I wanted to do my best to write a Check Please! Hogwarts AU for you. But it occurred to me that trying to write Hogwarts-age Jack would probably break my heart, so I decided to create a Hogwarts University AU for you instead. It's both my first Check Please! fic and my first HP!AU fic of any sort, but I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out. 
> 
> I have so many notes for so many stories based on these versions of the characters, and I am very tempted to revisit this little universe I've created, because I would just love to revisit some of my favorite moments from the webcomic and throw a little magic and Quidditch in there. 
> 
> I really hope you enjoy this story!
> 
> (Also, not that it matters at all for this story, but SAMWELL here is: the School of Advanced Magic, Wizarding Excellence, and Laudable Leadership.)
> 
> Many, many thanks to M for reading through this story and making it better!

By the time tryouts were scheduled to start, the crowd of students standing near the field had grown until there were a good hundred students. All of them were dressed for the tryouts, wearing comfy robes, broomsticks in hand. As the crowd around him chatted with one another, speculating about the team’s returning lineup, Eric Bittle just looked at the Quidditch pitch before him in trepidation. His worrying was cut short though, by a loud yell from out in front of them.

“Alright, people! Settle down already!” The guy standing in front of them waited for the other students to quiet down before continuing. “Most of you have been here before, some of you have even tried out before. For those of you who don’t usually pay attention to sports, or for those of you who are frogs, I’m Shitty.

“Before we get you guys suited up and put you through some drills, let me warn you that we don’t have many slots up for grabs this year. Most of our team from last year is back,” Shitty said before continuing, “Ransom and Holster are returning as our Beaters, Johnson’s back for one last year as Keeper, I’m back as Chaser, and of course our new team captain is also a returning Chaser, Jack Zimmermann.” 

The group of students immediately reacted upon hearing that name, whispering amongst themselves. Eric understood why, though he refrained from gossiping. It was surprising enough to just realize that he might be able to tryout for the team by flying with the legendary son of the greatest Quidditch player of the past century, Bad Bob. 

As Shitty continued to talk about the returning team members, Eric started to feel as though someone else was watching him. Glancing to the side quickly, he saw a group of guys already wearing the Quidditch robes of the SAMWELL team. He momentarily locked eyes with a tall, serious looking player, a few years older than him by the looks of it. Eric looked away, blushing slightly, as soon as he realized that the piercing blue eyes were focused solely on him at that moment. 

Forcing himself to focus on what Shitty was saying, Eric felt his hopes of making the team start to sink as he realized that there were only two positions open: Chaser and Seeker. Though he’d played as a Chaser before when playing with friends, Eric doubted that he was good enough to play as a Chaser alongside Jack Zimmermann. He had no idea whether or not he could play as a Seeker, but if he really wanted to tryout for the team, it seemed like that was going to be his only shot.

“Alright, so if you were interested in trying out only as a Keeper or Beater, give Lardo your contact info and we’ll get back to you if we need you for any reason later on in the year,” Shitty said, pointing at the young woman standing a few feet away from the other team players. She nodded in acknowledgment and Shitty continued, “If you want to try out as a Seeker, go with Jack and he’ll explain the setup for the tryouts. Potential Chasers, you’re with me!”

As the group of students began to break up, separating into their appropriate groups, Eric found himself glancing back over at the other Quidditch players, wondering which of them was Jack. The group had broken up, with most of the players heading down towards the Quidditch pitch. The tall, blue-eyed player was still standing there though, so Eric walked over to him. 

“Seeker?” the Quidditch player asked. 

“Yeah,” Eric replied. “I’ve never been the Seeker on a team, but my eyesight is pretty good so I’d like to give it a shot. I’m Eric, by the way. Eric Bittle.”

“Jack Zimmermann.”

Realizing this was his potential Quidditch captain and the son of a legendary Quidditch player, Eric did his best to remain calm and polite. “Pleasure to meet you, Jack,” he said with a smile. “So how will Seeker tryouts work?”

“Let’s get all of you potential Seekers together, and then I can explain it to all of you at once.”

“Oh sure,” Eric replied. Though he had hoped to engage Jack in some friendly conversation, it seemed like the team captain just wanted to get to work. 

Of the original group of students, only twenty-five wanted to tryout for the Seeker position. Jack led them all down to the field and gave them the rundown of how Seeker tryouts would go. Five of them would get up on their broomsticks while he released the golden snitch. First competitor from each round to find the snitch would automatically advance to the next round of tryouts, and then those five would compete against one another over and over, eliminating one competitor in each round until there was only one person left: the new Seeker for the SAMWELL team. 

Eric stood at the edge of the field watching as the first four rounds of competitors went through and searched for the snitch. Though he still wasn’t sure if he could make it onto the team, his confidence grew with each round as he managed to locate the snitch each time, before any of the players in the air could spot it. When the last round—his round—came up, Eric smiled in anticipation. 

His group mounted their broomsticks and took to the air. Jack released the snitch, and it was out of sight within seconds. Bitty rose up to a higher vantage point than the other competitors, and began to scan the area methodically, keeping an eye out for a possible glimmer of gold flittering through the air. As he was about to turn, Eric finally saw that glimmer out of the corner of his eye. Taking a brief moment to make sure that it really was the snitch and not a trick of lighting or magic, Eric turned on his broomstick and immediately dove towards the snitch. 

The other competitors responded as soon as they saw his movement, and as they caught up with him, Eric found himself clinging to his broomstick for dear life, fighting for control as he tried to avoid flailing limbs and sharp elbows. Before any of them could grab onto the snitch, it easily slid out of the way. Eric managed to change his course of direction by pulling a backflip in mid-air and lunged at the right moment. His hand barely managed to close around the snitch, but it was enough. He had ended this round. 

“Nice move,” one of the other racers said as they headed back to the ground.

“Thanks,” he replied, grinning to himself. 

Once back on the ground, he handed the snitch back to Jack. Jack nodded at him and asked, “Do you need a break? Or are you good to go again and race against the remaining players?”

Surprised to even be given a choice, Eric replied, “I can go again.” He didn’t want to disrupt the momentum he had going for him; Eric just knew that he stood a chance at getting the snitch. And if it just so happened to help a certain Quidditch team member form a better opinion of him, then that was just the icing on the cake. 

Moving back into the air with the other four finalists, Eric smiled to himself. He had this. And ten minutes, one fake-out dive, and a quick barrel roll later, he had proven himself right. 

He noticed the cheers from the remaining spectators and athletes as he landed back on the ground. Walking over to Jack, he handed him the snitch with a big smile. “So what do you think?” he asked Jack. Expecting a brief acknowledgment or even a small compliment, Eric was taken aback when Jack responded. 

“You should eat more protein,” Jack said instead.

“I…uh…what?” Eric asked in befuddlement. Of all the responses he could have expected, that statement had just come out of nowhere. How in the world did Jack Zimmermann think that was an adequate response, he wondered to himself.

“Protein, Bittle,” Jack repeated, “We spend a lot of time in practice, and even if you wouldn’t consider Quidditch to be the most physically demanding sport, it still does cause players to burn off a ton of energy over the course of practices and matches. So you should up your protein intake so that you’re ready for that,” Jack finished with a sharp nod. 

“But…” Eric paused, trying to sort out his thoughts. “Does that mean I’m on the team?” he asked Jack. 

Jack blinked at him before flushing slightly. He ducked his head sheepishly as he looked at Eric. “Sorry, Bittle. I thought I’d mentioned that part already.” Jack smiled slightly and continued, “You’re our Seeker. You were by far the best player out here today, and even if you need to work on avoiding bludgers and other players at high speeds, no one else comes close to your speed and reflexes in the air.”

Eric grinned in elation. “Thanks, Jack! I can’t wait to play with you and the others. I promise I’ll work hard to improve on avoiding things without nearly falling off the broom.”

“I’m sure you will. But just make sure you remember what I told you,” Jack said as he walked over to where Shitty and the other players were congratulating a young woman. “Eat more protein.”

Eric shook his head as he watched his new captain walk away. "This boy is going to take getting used to," he said to himself. He smiled slightly and followed Jack, excited to officially meet his new teammates. As Eric walked over to the other players, it finally started to sink in that he was really the new Seeker for the SAMWELL team. Life was about to get a lot more interesting.


End file.
